Hook for excavator buckets

ABSTRACT

A hook for attaching a load supporting tension member to an excavator bucket which is adapted for pivotal movement between a plurality of predetermined digging positions and a plurality of substantially inverted load supporting attitudes. The hook is mounted on the bucket in noninterfering relation when the bucket is in the digging positions and maintains the tension member in load suspending relation from the bucket through a range of bucket positions in the inverted load supporting attitudes of approximately 180*.

United States Patent 1191 Blood et a]. June 4, 1974 [5 BOOK FOR EXCAVATOR BUCKETS 3,176,866 4/1965 Meister 214/620 3.243.066 3/1966 Gardner et a1 214/145 [75] Inventors: Ernest BlPdzwashmgmni 3.373.885 3/1968 Allison 214/131 Robert W. L1cht1, Oswego; James A. Plerson Aurora of Primary Examiner-Robert G. Sheridan [73] Assignee: Caterpillar Tractor Co., Peoria, lll. Assistant th No nd Fled y 30 1972 Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Ralph E. Walters [21] Appl. No.1 257,825 [57] ABSTRACT A hook for attaching a load supporting tension mem- 52 us. c1. 214/145 24/2305 R excavator bucket which is adaPted for 51 1m. (:1 .f B66f 19/00 movement between a plurality of predetermined [58] Field of Search 248/304 294 211 217- digging PQSitiOflS and a plurality of substantially 24/230 5 2121/1415 d verted load supporting attitudes. The hook is mounted on the bucket in 'noninterfering' relation when the [56] References Cited bucket is in the digging positions and maintains the tension member in load suspending relation from the UNITED STATES PATENTS 1 bucket through a range of bucket positions in the in- 932,776 8/1909 Gentner 24/2305 LH verted load supporting attitudes f approximately 1,616,766 2/1927 Staples i 24/2305 R 1800- 2,184,812 12/1939 Hendrix 248/304 1 2,503,522 4/1950 Struthers et a1. 214/131 vv v 3 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures 1 HOOK FOR EXCAVATOR BUCKETS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Hydraulic excavators are used extensively to excavate trenches for burying pipes,culverts, and the like. One excavator operating procedure is to excavate a portion of the trench and lower the pipes into that portion of the trench prior to moving the machine. To expedite the handling of the pipes, many excavators have a conventionally shaped hook secured to the bucket for looping a cable sling thereon to support the pipes while lowering them into the trench. One of the problems encountered with such hook arrangements is that an excavator bucket can be pivoted through a wide range of operating positions and consequently, in some positions of the bucket, the throat opening of the hook is oriented downwardly allowing the cable sling to slip off the hook. Another problem is that the tip portion of conventional hooks is relatively weaker than its main trunk and is not intended to carry loads. In certain bucket positions, however, the cable can slip to the tip of the hook and with the load concentrated in this area breakage frequently occurs. These problems constitute potential hazards to workmen in the vicinity who are sometimes required to be in the trench to help align the pipe sections.

Another excavator operating procedure is to excavate the trench to its total length, or a relatively long section thereof, in one operation and then lower the pipes into the completed trench while moving the excavator along the trench in a separate operation. With this procedure the bucket normally has an eye secured thereto and a clevis and swivel arrangement is attached to the eye for the duration of the pipe handling operation. The cable sling is connected to the swivel arrangement for handling the pipes.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide an improved hook for excavator buckets.

Another object of this invention is to provide a combination hook and eye which enables an excavator to perform a wider variety of operating procedures than is obtainable with excavators having conventional bucket hooks.

Another object of this invention is to provide such an improved hook for excavator buckets which is effective to releasably receive a load supporting tension member BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of an improved hook for excavator buckets embodying the principles of the present invention associated with a hydraulic excavator.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged side elevational view of the improved hook for excavator buckets of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a somewhat enlarged sectional view through the tip of the hook taken along line IIIIII of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a somewhat enlarged sectional view through the hook adjacent to its opening taken along line lV-IV of FIG. 2.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring more particularly to the drawing, a hook embodying the principles of the present invention is generally indicatedby the reference numeral 10 in association with a bucket 11 of a hydraulic excavator 12. The hydraulic excavator includes a bucket actuating linkage 13 which has a boom 14 pivoted at 16 to the forward end of the excavator. A pair of hydraulic hoist jacks, one of which is shown at 17, extends between the excavator and the boom for pivoting the boom about pivot 16. A stick 18 is pivoted to the distal end of the boomat l9 and is movable by a hydraulic jack 21 pivotally connected between the boom and the stick. The bucket is pivoted at 22 to the distal end of the stick, and a hydraulic jack 23 is pivoted to the stick and connected to the bucket through a wrist linkage 24. The hydraulic jacks are double acting and are controlled by pressurized hydraulic fluid from a control system on the excavator in the usual manner.

The bucket 11 includes a floor 26 having a cutting edge 27 protruding therefrom. A mounting bracket 28 containing the pivot 22 is secured to a top wall 29 spaced from the floor and interconnected therewith by an arcuate back wall 31.

The hook 10 of the present invention is integrally formed on a connector bracket 32 having an elongated body 33 and an arcuate base 34. The hook is formed at one end of the body by a substantially elliptical opening 36 having a tip 37 spaced from the base to form a throat 38 adjacent to the base. The throat permits the entry of a cable 39 into the opening for supporting a load represented by a pipe section 40 or the like in suspended relation from the bucket. The opening is elongated or has a major axis disposed in a direction substantially normal to the base. I

As best shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the elongated opening 36 in the hook 10 is provided with an arcuate surface 41 which minimizes the development of any sharp bends which might otherwise occur in the cable 39 and distributes the stresses over a wider area. The hook has a generally wedge-shaped cross section formed by a pair of tapered side surfaces 42 of the hook with the arcuate surface forming the widest part of the wedge. The

wedge-shaped'configuration of the hook provides the most efficient strength to weight ratio. The arcuate base 34 matches the curvature of the arcuate back wall 31 of the bucket 11 and is secured thereto, as by welding or the like, with the hook oriented toward the pivot 22 connecting the bucket to the stick 18.

The elongated body 33 of the connector bracket 32 has a beam section 43 formed on its opposite end. The beam section increases the section modulus of the hook and thus increases its strength. An aperture or eye 44 is formed in the beam section and is adapted to receive a pin for attaching a clevis to theconnector bracket when desired for certain load handling operations which will subsequently be described.

OPERATION While the operation of the present invention is believed clearly apparent from the foregoing description,

further amplification will subsequently be made in the following brief summary of such operation. In operation, the excavator'bucket 11 is manipulated through a plurality of normal digging positions for excavating a trench by actuation of the hydraulic jacks 17, 21 and 23 of the bucket actuating linkage 13. The bucket is also manipulatable to a plurality of inverted load supporting attitudes primarily by actuation of the hydraulic jack 23 through the wrist linkage 24. Such inverted load supporting attitudes vary according to conditions but usually the bucket is disposed somewhere between the broken line position indicated at 11 and the inverted full line position of HO. 1.

After a portion of the trench has been excavated and prior to moving the machine, the bucket 11 is manipulated so that the'throat 38 of the hook is oriented generally upwardly. The bucket actuating linkage 13 is then positioned so that the bucket is above the pipe section 40 and the cable 39 is releasably connected in load suspending relation from the hook for supporting the pipe therefrom. The throat permits ready entry of the cable .into the opening 36 of the hook without requiring the use of special tools. The actuating linkage is then repositioned in preparation for lowering the pipe section into the trench.

Although the bucket 11 is normally maintained-in the attitude shown by the broken lines in F IG. 1 when supporting the pipe section from the hook 11, the bucket is occasionally pivoted to other positions when lowering the section into the trench and aligning it with the preceding pipe sections. Pivoting the bucket in this manner provides more precise control than manipulating the boom 14 or stick 18. However, the hook of the present invention will maintain the cable in a load suspending relation from the bucket while it is being rotated from the broken line position approximately 180 to the solid line position.

Occasionally, the excavator is employed for an extended duration exclusively for lowering pipe sections into a previously excavated trench. For such continuous operation as a hoist, the excavator 12 is positioned on one side of the trench and to aid in aligning the pipe sections lowered into the trench, a clevis and swivel arrangement, not shown, is attached to the bucket with the cable suspended from the swivel. For optimum efficiency, it is desirable that the swivel be relatively permanently attached to the bucket since there is no need to disconnect the cable from the bucket for the extended period of nondigging use. The eye 44 in the hook strengthening beam 43 of the present invention is provided to permit a pivot pin to be inserted therethrough for attachment of the clevis and swivel arrangement.

In view of the foregoing, it is readily apparent that the structure of the present invention provides an improved hook for excavator buckets which is shaped to maintain a cable in load suspending relation from the bucket through a range bucket positions in the inverted load supportingattitudes of approximately 180. The hook has a tip portion spaced from its base a distance to permit ready entry of the cable into the opening of the hook while resisting inadvertent separation therefrom through the above noted range of bucket positions. The beam section formed integral with the hook greatly increases the section modulus of the hook and thus increases the strength of the hook sufficiently for the tip portion to withstand the loads imposed thereon by operation of the excavator. Forming the aperture in the beam section provides a compact hook and eye combination which requires less space than that required by individually securing separate hooks and eyes to the bucket.

While the invention has been described and shown with particular reference to the preferred embodiment, it will be apparent that variations might be possible that would fall within the scope of the present invention which is not intended to be limited except as defined in the following claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A hook for attaching a load supporting tension member to an excavator bucket adapted for pivotal movement between a plurality of predetermined digging positions and a plurality of substantially inverted load supporting attitudes, comprising;

an elongated body having opposite ends and a base secured to said bucket in noninterferring relation when the bucket is in said digging position, said base forming a side of said body;

a hook portion formed on one of said ends of said body having an opening and a tip spaced from said basea distance to permit ready entry of the tension member into the opening but resisting inadvertent separation therefrom through a range of bucket positions in said inverted load supporting attitudes in Which the hook is rotated approximately and a beam section formed at the other of said ends of said body in strengthening relation to said hook portion, said beam section having an aperture provided therein, said opening and said aperture being disposed substantially equidistant from said side.

2. The hook of claim 1 wherein said opening is substantially elliptical and has a major axis disposed substantially normal to said base.

3. A hook adapted to be mounted on a pivotal support member for suspending a load supporting tension member therefrom, comprising;

an elongated body having opposite ends and an arcuate base forming a side of said body for permanent attachment to said support member;

a hook portion provided at one of said ends of said elongated body having an elliptical opening formed by an arcuate surface and having a major axis substantially normal to said base, said hook portion having a tip spaced from said base forming a throat to permit ready entry of such tension member into said opening for retainably suspending a load therefrom through a range of support member positions in which the hook is rotated approximately 180, said hook portion having a substantially dual wedge shape including a wedge-shaped cross section blending with said arcuate surface of said opening and increasing in cross sectional area from said tip toward the other of said ends; and

a beam section formed at the other of said ends of said body having an eye formed therein, a web section disposed between said eye and said opening substantially opposite to said throat of said hook portion and common to said eye and said opening, said eye and said opening being spaced substantially equidistant from said base, whereby said beam section forming said eye extends integrally from said hook portion so that said web section strengthens both the hook portion and the eye for achieving maximum strength with a minimum of material. 

1. A hook for attaching a load supporting tension member to an excavator bucket adapted for pivotal movement between a plurality of predetermined digging positions and a plurality of substantiAlly inverted load supporting attitudes, comprising; an elongated body having opposite ends and a base secured to said bucket in noninterferring relation when the bucket is in said digging position, said base forming a side of said body; a hook portion formed on one of said ends of said body having an opening and a tip spaced from said base a distance to permit ready entry of the tension member into the opening but resisting inadvertent separation therefrom through a range of bucket positions in said inverted load supporting attitudes in which the hook is rotated approximately 180*; and a beam section formed at the other of said ends of said body in strengthening relation to said hook portion, said beam section having an aperture provided therein, said opening and said aperture being disposed substantially equidistant from said side.
 2. The hook of claim 1 wherein said opening is substantially elliptical and has a major axis disposed substantially normal to said base.
 3. A hook adapted to be mounted on a pivotal support member for suspending a load supporting tension member therefrom, comprising; an elongated body having opposite ends and an arcuate base forming a side of said body for permanent attachment to said support member; a hook portion provided at one of said ends of said elongated body having an elliptical opening formed by an arcuate surface and having a major axis substantially normal to said base, said hook portion having a tip spaced from said base forming a throat to permit ready entry of such tension member into said opening for retainably suspending a load therefrom through a range of support member positions in which the hook is rotated approximately 180*, said hook portion having a substantially dual wedge shape including a wedge-shaped cross section blending with said arcuate surface of said opening and increasing in cross sectional area from said tip toward the other of said ends; and a beam section formed at the other of said ends of said body having an eye formed therein, a web section disposed between said eye and said opening substantially opposite to said throat of said hook portion and common to said eye and said opening, said eye and said opening being spaced substantially equidistant from said base, whereby said beam section forming said eye extends integrally from said hook portion so that said web section strengthens both the hook portion and the eye for achieving maximum strength with a minimum of material. 